The present invention is directed to an improved mounting bracket, and more particularly to a readily adjustable bracket for mounting a cannister to a valve assembly.
Various applications require the use of a mounting bracket to releasably secure a cannister to a valve assembly. For example, several types of diesel engine starting aids inject ether based fuel into the diesel engine during the start-up procedure. The ether based fuel is often packaged in aerosol cannisters, and a mounting bracket is used to releasably secure fuel cannisters to the valve assembly of the ether injection system. The mounting brackets used in these and similar applications should preferably accommodate cannisters of varying sizes with a minimum of adjustment. Furthermore, it is often desirable for these brackets to include means for protecting the valve assembly from dirt when a cannister is not mounted in the bracket.
One type of mounting bracket which has been used in the past includes a U-shaped frame which defines several apertures along the parallel ends of the frame and is provided with a cap which is positioned by a threaded adjustment screw. This bracket is used in conjunction with a plate which is provided with protruding tabs on opposed sides of the plate and serves as a mounting surface for a valve assembly. The bracket is assembled for use by inserting the tabs on the plate into the appropriate apertures in the frame. After the bracket has been assembled, it is used by screwing the threaded cup in place over one end of an aerosol cannister, thereby positioning the aerosol cannister against the valve assembly.
Such mounting brackets exhibit certain disadvantages. In that the U-shaped frame must be disassembled from the mounting plate in order to adjust the frame length, the frame is a separable piece of the bracket which may, therefore, become separated from the bracket and misplaced. Moreover, many of these mounting brackets include separate extension pieces which may be affixed to the frame in order to extend the maximum length of the frame, and these extension pieces also may be lost or misplaced. Furthermore, the end sections of the frame protrude beyond the rear face of the mounting plate when the frame is positioned so that the cap is relatively near the mounting surface. In some applications the protruding end sections may adversely limit the locations in which the bracket may be mounted.